


The last word

by purple_cube



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-15
Updated: 2013-10-15
Packaged: 2017-12-29 12:46:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1005628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purple_cube/pseuds/purple_cube
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony isn't the only one who has nightmares about the portal. Written for the Dreamwidth comm Fic_Promptly and the theme 'nightmares'. NB: contains major spoilers for Iron Man 3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The last word

 

The news coverage is horrifying – but mesmerizing. Pepper’s mind scans each frame of footage for that familiar metallic body, but she fails to identify him.

 

She doesn’t even notice the air turbulence or the way her body weight shifts from side to side inside the small airplane; but she lets Karl guide her to her seat when the warning lights spring to life. Her eyes never leave the screen as somebody – _probably Karl_ , she thinks dimly – fastens the seatbelt in her lap.

 

A moment later, the TV monitor flips to grey noise, and she cries out in frustration. She notices her cell phone on the side then, and reaches for it instinctively. Tony’s image flashes onto the screen along with the Missed Call icon, and Pepper lets out a shriek, gaining the attention of the cabin.

 

She ignores the questions and calls of her name, hitting Dial as fast as she can. Her hand trembles as she tries to hold the phone against her ear, and she has to use the other hand to grip her wrist and keep it steady.

 

A familiar voice greets her, but it isn’t Tony. The voicemail message that Jarvis delivers is polite and as cheerful as the A.I. can get, but she doesn’t hear his words. The phone slips from her hand.

 

She doesn’t remember much of the rest of the journey.

 

Later, when they’re back on the ground, one of the newer aides shows her footage uploaded on the internet. She doesn’t register the meaning of the tiny speck that falls from the closing portal; not until the camera zooms in. Her heart leaps at the recognition of the suit, fractionally before the horror of its lifeless and free-falling state takes hold. And despite the fact that she has spoken to him, that she knows that he’s okay, fear grips her. Their conversation had been brief, and he didn’t tell her about any of this; only that he had been involved and that it was over and he was safe.

 

The video ends abruptly, and she turns to her aide. “What happened?”

 

He looks like he’s regretting showing her the clip, but he places his hand on hers in reassurance. “There’s no more footage, but an eyewitness account on one of the news websites states that the Hulk caught him before he got to the ground. He’s fine.”

 

“He’s fine,” she repeats to herself. The aide smiles and nods his head as if she’s speaking to him.

 

Two days pass before Tony comes home to Malibu. She lies and tells him that she understands, that S.H.I.E.L.D. need him more than she does. Both mornings she wakes in a cold sweat, whispering those words to herself over and over again. _He’s fine_.

 

When he finally does arrive home, she doesn’t tell him. Her nightmares fade within days, but his are only just beginning, and she feels helpless to do anything about it.

 

*

 

The fire burns bright behind her eyelids, sparks of red and orange soaring all around her. Her body is propelled toward the bursting colors, and she hits a wall of heat a fraction of a second before blistering pain sears through her entire body.

 

She screams, the pain too much to bear. Somewhere in the distance, a voice calls out to her. And then she becomes aware of respite from the heat, a cool hand resting on her shoulder.

 

She sits up in the bed, gasping. Tony sits beside her, both hands firmly gripping her shoulders.

 

“Nightmare,” she whispers, breathless, by way of explanation.

 

“Welcome to my world,” he comments dryly.

 

When her breathing slows, he offers to get up and make her a coffee. She nods her assent and follows him to the kitchen, faltering momentarily as she adjusts to the layout of their new but temporary apartment.

 

He hands her the mug as she sits on a stool by the window, before retreating to lean back against the bench top opposite her.

 

“The fire?” he asks quietly.

 

She merely nods, before taking a sip of her coffee.

 

“Worst moment of my life,” he says, shaking his head. “And believe me, I’ve had a few of those moments.”

 

“I’m the one that fell,” she points out with a wry smile.

 

“Hey, I’ve fallen too,” he protests. “Does a portal to an alien world above New York sound familiar to you?”

 

She rolls her eyes, bringing a fond smile to his face in response. It fades a moment later though.

 

“I’ve fallen too,” he repeats. “But this – watching _you_ fall – was the first time _I_ got left behind. I was almost grateful to Killian for providing a distraction.”

 

“A distraction?” she queries, incredulous. “He would have killed you.”

 

“I didn’t care,” he admits bluntly. “The thought of losing you…I couldn’t let it loose in my mind. It would have driven my crazy.”

 

Her lips twist into an ironic smile.

 

“What?” he asks, curious.

 

“I went through the same thing after New York. I saw footage of you falling from the portal, and it haunted me.” Her smile returns as she continues. “But, you came home. And I got over it. So now, it’s your turn to get over it.”

 

Tony chuckles lightly. “Always so easy with you, isn’t it, Miss Potts?”

 

He crosses the gap between them, taking the mug from her hands and placing it on the counter. His hand rises to cup her cheek. “You’ll get over this, too. I got over the whole portal thing, after all.”

 

“Besides.” Tony pokes his chest with a forefinger, momentarily distracted by the still unfamiliar sensation of flesh instead of glass. A second later, he returns her dry expression. “Portal to an alien world. Trumps falling into a fire _every single time_.”

 

Pepper shakes her head in resignation. “Always have to have the last word, don’t you?”

 

“For as long as you’ve known me,” he quips, before sobering at another memory.

 

“But seriously,” he continues, eyes soft as they meet hers. “I think you got the last word when you walked out of that fire and saved my ass.”

 

Her lips curl into a smile before she reaches forward for a gentle kiss.

 

“And don’t you forget it,” she whispers, eyes still closed.


End file.
